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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 29, 1969)
' . . _ _ J L Che Battalion Vol. No. 27 College Station, Texas Wednesday, October 29, 1969 Telephone 845-2226 475 Contributed Campus Chest teve S'.l fy Pam Troboy attalion Staff Writer | About $475 has been collected far for the Campus Chest Jrive, said Bill Cronrath, co- ublicity chairman, Tuesday |ight. The Kyle Field and Town Hall bases of the fund drive to aid Iggies in financial difficulty pgan last weekend, he said. “Maroon and white barrels, banned by members of Alpha Phi |mega, campus service fraternity, ere set up at the gates of Kyle and the doors of Town |[all,” Cronrath said. “The dorm drive will begin Monday,” he said. “Dorms and outfits can turn in donations to the Student Finance Office in the Memorial Student Center. The Campus Chest Sweetheart will be selected on the basis of the high est per capita donation of the sponsoring dorm or outfit.” Names of candidates spon sored by Corps outfits must be turned in to David Owen tomor row in dorm 9, room 410, Owens said. Civilian candidates’ names must be turned in to Cronroth in dorm 19, room 201, by Nov. 17. Contributions will be solicited through Nov. 21, and the sweet heart will be introduced at Town Hall on Nov. 26. Dorm and out fit standings throughout the drive will be displayed outside Guion Hall during the drive. The fund is administered by the welfare committee of the Stu dent Senate, and is used to aid Aggies in financial emergencies. “Several wives of students had emergency operations last year,” said Jim Stephenson, member of the student welfare committee, “and this money helped to pay some expenses.” Stephenson said the funds will also be contributed to charitable organizations, such as United Fund, and to the support of 38 orphans from Faith Home in Houston. “We are also contributing to the support of two Indian chil dren who live at the Cherokee Indian reservation at Vian, Okla.,” Stephenson said. “We sponsored Carla Remier last year, and this year we also have a seven-year-old boy, Clyde Spen cer. These children come up for a football weekend and exchange letters with Aggies.” e deferl (Photl Puzzling The Word Haques Marking Sites of Former Buildings Inconsistent Plaques marking the sites of a ouple of the university’s former tructures are puzzling. “Site of Gathright Hall,” in- orms one marker, “First Build- ig, 1876.” The other, affixed near the rest entrance of the Academic luilding, offers conflicting in- ormation. "Site of Old Main, First College luilding, Erected 1875, Burned lay 27, 1912,” proclaims the Jlass of 1942 memorial . The Academic Building marker correct, according to A&M irchivist Ernest Langford. He Jso clears up two other mysteries a recent publication, “Getting The College Under Way.” The 64-page treatise outlines events from April 17, 1871, to Oct. 4, 1876, when A&M’s first class enrolled. On April 17, 1871, the Texas Legislature approved “a nact to provide for the estab lishment of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas.” Langford’s other correction, based on data from state and county records, dates Texas A&M’s actual beginning as June 21, 1871, a year earlier than is generally accepted. That was when land for A&M was deeded. With the university’s centen nial celebration less than seven years away, the date when A&M .leftover Halloween ‘Goodies’ r Card o Jle Collected Next Week Leftover sweets for Halloween trick-or-treaters will be collected next week in Bryan and College Station for youngsters who won’t be out ringing neighborhood door bells Friday. Goodis contributed here will be given as Christmas gifts for 1,200 children at the Austin State School for retarded children. They will remain in their dorms during the December holidays. The sixth annual collection will be made by Mr. and Mrs. James Robinette, 3210 Green. They will take the candy to Austin Nov. 8. “The drive has been very suc cessful in previous years,” com mented Mrs. Robinette, a bio chemistry and biophysics tech nician at A&M. Her husband is chemistry lab mechanic at the university. State school officials distribute the sweets, Mrs. Robinette said. The contributions last year re quired a trailer for transporting the treats to Austin. Thirteen collection points for the Nov. 3-7 drive will be at Crockett, Sul Ross, Henderson, College Hills and South Knoll Elementary Schools, Mrs. Beard’s and Mrs. Hardaway’s kinder gartens, Weingarten, Kroger and Orr’s Ridgecrest and Downtown supermarkets, Gibson’s and Cook’s discount stores. was located becomes increasingly important. “I would like to think the administration would take some action and enter into the record somewhere that the college was located in 1871, not 1872,” Lang ford commented. About a week before June 21, 1871, a three-man selection com mittee appointed by Governor E. J. Davis drove a stake in the middle of a dewberry patch near —but not at—the present site of the Academic Building and an nounced, “Here we’ll build the college.” Other sites considered were at Galveston and near K e 11 u m Springs (now Bedias) and Pied mont Springs in Madison County, less than 20 miles east of College Station. Langford supports A&M’s 1871 beginning with Brazos County land deed records, newspaper references, correspondence in the Texas State Library archives, an overlooked date in a previous history, the diary of a visiting military officer and Texas legis lative records. Immediately after the site was decided, work was begun on a main college building. Due to mis handling of funds, poor workman ship and other causes, construc tion was stopped, a new commit tee was appointed, a new archi tect was hired and A&M’s first building, Old Main, was started at a new site about Aug. 27, 1873. Improved construction practices went into the biulding and in June, 1875, Gov. Richard Coke and other members of the col lege’s board of directors met in Bryan to “organize the college” and inspect the recently-complet ed building. Langford notes an appropria tion of $32,000 was made Feb. 8, 1875, for construction of a board ing hall, known first as the Mess Hall or “Steward’s hall” and then named in honor of A&M’s first president, Thomas S. Gathright, about 1899. Langford indicates that Old Main, though ready for occu pancy more than a year before A&M’s first students were en rolled, first housed “mechanicks” who helped construct Gathright Hall. Two mysteries cleared up in the Langford book concern where clay for building bricks came from and the site of the “old” Old Main, abandoned because of unsatisfactory workmanship. Bricks used in building Old Main, Gathright Hall and five professors’ homes known as “The Line” and later “Quality Row” were made and fired on the cam pus from native clay. Langford found the spot where clay was obtained while studying topography of the area. Natural drainage sends runoff east of the Academic Building to the Nava- sota. Rainfall west of the build ing drains to the Brazos River. In tracing out five main gullies that radiate generally from the site of Old Main, whose geo graphic center was directly under the centerpoint of the present (See A&M’s, Page 4) IN APPRECIATION Sam Sharp, president of Bryan Building- and Loan Association, presents a certificate for a color television to State Sen. William T. (Bill) Moore, who represents the B-CS area, and his wife. The presentation was made during- an appreciation barbeque given for Moore at the A&M Research Annex Tuesday nigiit. 1,000 Gather At A&M Annex To Honor State Sen. Moore More than 1,000 persons gath ered at the A&M Research Annex Tuesday night to honor Sate Sen ator William T. (Bill) Moore. Bryan merchant Ervin Conway, one of several men presenting testimonials, said the words of praise directed to Senator Moore at the apprecaition barbecue were “well deserved and long over due.” “As a senior senator, he’s pro vided a tremendous service to Brazos County and his entire district,” Conway observed. “If anyone can appreciate Sen. Bill Moore,” noted State Rep. Bill Presnal, “certainly it is a fresh man representative in the Legis lature.” Presnal cited a few of the times Moore had personally helped him. “Senator Moore can always be depended upon, no matter what the job may be,” the local solon added. A&M President Earl Rudder described the senator as “one of the most articulate men in state government.” He also cited the important state committees on which Moore serves. “It’s a pleasure to see people from all over the state come here and say, ‘Thank you, Bill’,” Rud der pointed out. Rudder shared the rostrum with another university president, Dr. A. B. Templeton of Sam Houston State at Huntsville. “Those folks who live over in the other part of your district have the greatest respect for you,” Dr. Templeton told Senator Moore. He added that people in high places in Austin also respect him. Numerous persons from Austin and several other Texas cities joined area citizens in packing the Texas Transportation Insti- tue hangar for the appreciation barbecue. Some of them stood in a line a block long in brisk weath er, waiting to go through the dinner line prior to the program. In addition to the in-person testimonials, Senator Moore re ceived several congratulatory tel egrams, including ones from Gov. Preston Smith and Lt. Gov. Ben Barnes. “My greatest desire is to vote for you for higher office,” Brazos Varisco, a local farmer, told Sen ator Moore in still another testi monial. Pete Rodriguez, an A&M em ploye, said the senator is some times stubborn and rambunctious but emphasized “that’s the way he has to be” to get the job done. “You’ve done a lot for Texas A&M University,” Rodriguez told Moore. He also cited the senator’s role in helping pass a bill con cerning old age benefits. (See Moore, Page 4) Crew Members Announced The crews for the December 9- 13 production of “Tobacco Road” were announced yesterday as the Aggie Players began rehearsals for their second major produc tion this year. “Tobacco Road,” an adaptation of Erskine Caldwell’s best selling novel, by Jack Kirkland, was per formed 3,182 times on Broadway in an eight-year run. It is the story of a deteriorating southern sharecropping family down on their luck, but not their pride. Forty-eight members of the Aggie Players will be rehears ing, building sets, doing public ity, making costumes, working lights and sound, and setting up props to make this popular play a success. Head of Sets is Travis Miller, who is also the Stage Manager for this production. Working with him will be Melanie Haldas, William Foster, James Dennis, Hazel Pillans, and Terry Van Dyck. Head of Properties, or props, is Rod Hogan. Working with him will be Linda Etheredge and Gerald Hanlon. James Weyhenmeyer is head of Lights and Paul Peterson is head of Sound. Working with them are Irene Fazzino and Joel Salmons. Karen Buckland is head of costumes. Kay Slowey and Dave Bruton will be working with her. Head of the house and public ity crew is Bob Robinson. Work ing with him are Charlie Baker, Cyril Burke, Cheryl Blackburn, Ray Audette, Wally Bergquist, Martha Hoppess, Miles Massie, Arie Shinnar, Sam Olivares, Da vid Campbell, Greg Reynolds, Jack Easter, Andy Conlyn, and Margaret Curtis. Although most of these people are students taking Theater Arts courses, many are students and Bryan-College Station residents interested in working with and learning theater production. While Repairs Continue on Old One Plans Being Made for Construction of New Hospital 7p,it 1P> By Pat Little Battalion Staff Writer A new hospital for Texas A&M is planned, but repairs on the present one will be made to keep it usable until the new one can be constructed, according to Dean of Students James P. Hannigan. Hannigan said a committee is being set up to study new hospi tals on other campuses to get a “few ideas” and other people are working on the shape and num ber of beds the hospital will have. “Construction won’t begin for several years because it takes time to plan it all out,” Hannigan continued. “Preliminary planning on the expansion of the Memorial Student Center has taken five years so that gives you some idea of how long it will take.” The U. S. Public Health Serv ice at one time was to give a $300,000 grant to A&M for con struction of an experimental hos pital, Hannigan said. “We were to pay t h e other half,” he added. The new concept featured pre fabricated rooms which would be placed in a “shell” and the floors, and walls would consist of panels that could be taken out to reach power cables so equipment could DEPRESSING SCENE The walls of a room on the second floor of the University Hospital show the ill effects of Weather. Moisture seeping through the walls or leaking from the roof, hospital author ities say, causes the paint to crack and peel. They also say that repainting is a futile attempt. (Photo by Pat Little) Bryan Building & Loan Association. Your Sav ing Center, since 1919. B B &L- -Adv. be placed anywhere in the room, Hannigan said. A model of such a room was put on display at the American Hospital Association in Chicago and pictures of it appeared in several nationwide magazines, Hannigan said. The PHS grant was cut off, Hannigan said, when former President Lyndon B. Johnson cut back on federal spending. A hospital of this type has been constructed in Dallas and A&M won’t get another grant, since the one considered was for an experi mental hospital, Hannigan added. Repairs on the present hospital include reroofing it and refurbish ing the inside, Hannigan said. Bids for the reroofing have not been taken yet according to Har- o 1 d Carter, System Physical Plants manager of construction. The condition of the present hospital was summed up as being “outdated” by Dr. Kenneth L. Nelson, hospital chief of staff. In the west wing, built in 1916, the plaster has fallen away from the walls in many rooms, Nelson said, and the paint is peeling in others. “The roof leaks and the plaster becomes saturated and falls off the walls when it rains,” Nelson said. “In one of the wards we have to go in periodically and clean the paint off the beds, and new paint doesn’t last due to the moisture.” Nelson said he was going to use a room in the basement for a conference and lecture room, but after looking at the room he decided it was “hopeless.” The room has a hole in the wall that goes through to the outside, the wood on the doorway is rot ting, and paint was peeling off the walls and ceiling. In the east wing, built in 1936, the rooms are in better condition, although the roof there leaks also, according to Nelson. “In the main ward we have to put out pails to catch the water every time it rains and there are few rooms that don’t have water stains on the ceiling,” Nelson said. “One of the leaks in the main ward is around a light fix ture.” The nurses’ station on the sec ond floor was in such poor con dition that the nurses, their hus- (See Hospital, Page 4) Artist Showcase Opens Year With Young London Pianist The first Artist Showcase pre sentation this year steps off Thursday night with Stephen Bishop, celebrated pianist from London. The presentation begins at 8 in the Memorial Student Center Ballroom. Bishop, who was born in Los Angeles, went to England in 1959 to study under the late Dame Myra Hess. Two years later, at the age of 21, his debut recital brought him immediate recogni tion in the London musical world. Since then, he has toured Eu rope, the United States and New Zealand, as well as many concerns with orchestra backup in London. The London Daily Telegraph described him as “A pianist of dignity, power and emotion.” He is presently scheduled to appear with the New York Phil harmonic Symphony, the Israel Philharmonic, as well as give 16 concerts in London. This is the first of the many performances to be given through the Artist Showcase series. Also scheduled is Sabicas, a celebrat ed Spanish guitarist, the Guar- neri String Quartet, and the Dal las Symphony. University National Bank “On the side of Texas A&M.” —Adv. X